We had the chance to interview filmmaker Brandon Li on MirrorLessons a couple of months ago. He is a director, cinematographer and video editor from Los Angeles who does commercial work but is also known for the short documentaries he records while traveling the globe. Many of his travel videos have been selected as “Pick of the week” on Vimeo, including one of his most beautiful: Balinese.
His new short documentary is about life in Western Mongolia. Brandon and his producer Ansley Sawyer spent a few weeks with the nomadic Kazakh people and filmed their daily activities which involve training eagles to hunt, herding yaks, racing camels and other interesting activities. Like most of Brandon’s videos, you won’t find interviews or the traditional structure of a documentary. The video is less than 7 minutes and has been edited in a very dynamic way, with both music and sound effects. The overall rhythm alternates between actions shots and simple or intimate moments like waking up in the morning or feeding a trained eagle after supper. It is a journey about emotions, details and glimpses into the daily life of the people there. In the words of Brandon:
I spent a few weeks living with them and experiencing one of the most unique cultures in the world. Saddle up and enjoy the ride.
Brandon used a Sony A7r mark II, RX10 mark II and a Go Pro Hero 4. The latter was attached to an eagle to capture some great POV flying scenes. The RX10 II was also used for slow motion shots. You can also visit Brandon’s website here. Some of these clips are available for licensing.